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Budget cuts preventing investment in tech

Eight in ten IT departments in Ireland are being held back from making investments in new technologies due to budget cuts, according to research from Sungard Availability Services.

This figure is considerably higher than their counterparts in other countries including the UK and Canada, where 61pc said that they have been held back from making investments in new technologies, while one in two IT departments in the US feel they are being held back from making investments in technology due to budget cuts.

In addition, an overwhelming majority (89pc) of Irish IT departments identified security as the area most affected by a squeeze on IT costs.

Surprisingly the research found that despite this impact on security, when asked to list the top three concerns facing the business, the issue of cyber security did not make the cut – for Irish businesses ensuring mobility 56pc, demands from wider business 55pc and changing IT infrastructure 49pc were rated highest.

Globally 43pc of IT departments identified remaining secure to cyber threats as their second biggest concern, only 1pc lower than Ireland at 44pc.
From the research it would appear that the various high profile cyber attacks across all sectors, and upcoming changes in EU General Data Protection Regulation are of importance to Ireland’s IT leaders, but other priorities take precedence.

“Ireland has long been seen as the gateway into Europe, with its credentials for technology well-versed.
However, this accolade can only continue if organisations do not get caught up in day-to-day tasks and focus on driving adoption of new technologies to drive forward positive change,” Carmel Owens, GM of Sungard Availability Services Ireland, said.

Sungard Availability Services, which provides information availability through managed IT, cloud, and recovery services, has published the Little Book of IT which provides insight into the pain points, challenges and opportunities facing IT departments across the globe.
The research that the company has done identified four keys to good innovation for IT departments. The four keys are;

1. Spend day-to-day time innovating – Irish respondents spend only 11pc of time is dedicated to innovation, compared to the global average of 28pc
2. Leverage a bimodal IT model – the global average is 79pc with Ireland lagging somewhat at 65pc

3. Invest heavily in emerging technologies – globally this is done by 69pc of IT departments, with Ireland close behind at 61pc
4. Proactively work with other lines of business – all IT teams need to get better at this; globally less than half (44pc) spend time being proactive, but in Ireland this drops substantially to 18pc.